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In response to the Covid-19 Pandemic, the faculty and staff of the Hank Greenspun School of Journalism and Media Studies began working from home and teaching online. Now that faculty and students are returning to campus and having more opportunities for face-to-face interactions, we almost feel like we need to re-introduce ourselves to our colleagues and students. The same is true for other schools and departments in the College of Urban Affairs and across the university. Since we boast a new podcasting studio and classes in podcasting, audio announcing, audio production, and audio storytelling, we believe that the best way to introduce ourselves is by sharing the personal stories and backgrounds of our faculty and staff. The goal is to introduce each of our faculty and staff members to students, the public, and each other. Starting with these podcasts, we hope to build a podcasting network devoted to helping students and the public meet the people who teach the classes, conduct the research, and manage media operations. We also hope to get to know each other better and build a richer academic community. So lend an ear to the personal stories of the faculty and staff preparing students for a promising future.
Kevin Stoker
Welcome to Inside JMS, a podcast featuring the faculty and staff of the Hank Greenspun School of Journalism and Media Studies. I'm Kevin Stoker, director of the Hank Greenspun school, and with me is my co host, Dr Dave Nourse.
Dave Nourse
Always a pleasure, my friend.
Kevin Stoker
And we are really excited today to have with us. Kim Linzy, music director, just person extraordinaire at KUNV radio. Kim has been there so long that she probably is the institutional knowledge of KUNV. Tell us about when you started at KUNV.
Kim Linzy
Thank you. Dr Stoker, thank you so much, and thank you for having me. Dr Stoker, Dr Nourse, I started at KUNV in 1989 as a volunteer, and I went through the On Air Training. Previously, I had graduated from Columbia School of broadcasting. So when I moved to Las Vegas, a brief story. I went on a job interview, and the owner of the company summer resume saw the well resume, I'll leave it there. And he saw that I like jazz. I graduated. He says, My friend is the general manager at the University station. He said, You need to go talk to him. I was like, okay, so I did. I followed up, and I introduced myself to the general manager at the time, which was Rob Rosenthal, and I went through the training, which was four weeks. You submitted audition cassette tape and and then if approved, and it was approved, I was assigned the air shift. So I had one air shift. And then time moved on, a few months, and I started getting calls from other colleagues. Can you fill in for me? Can you, can you do my show? So I would be, I would cover shows. So that lasted a few, a few years. And in 1994 the general manager at the time and the program director invited me to be the music director, and that's how it all started.
Kevin Stoker
Wow. So tell me about the Columbia School of broadcasting. Where was this?
Kim Linzy
In Hollywood, California. Hollywood and Vine, Dr Stoker, and back in the day, that was the broadcasting school for football players when they want to transition from football to broadcasting. Yeah and other celebrities. It was the training ground for yeah for broadcasting.
Kevin Stoker
And you know, you graduated from there, and then came here to Las Vegas. Now, were you from California originally?
Kim Linzy
No, I was born in New Jersey, Long Branch New Jersey, but my family moved to California and in 1960, so it was two years old at the time.
Kevin Stoker
That's great, yeah. So you know, you come here, you're hired in KUNV. KUNV hadn't been a jazz station for that long before you started right?
Kim Linzy
It had always had jazz Dr. Soker, it is had at that time shows were blocked. It was blocked programming. So it was always some form of jazz on the straight ahead, traditional jazz was on and then back. Then we do, we play smooth jazz as of now, but it was contemporary jazz back then, so some of the veterans in the business in this jazz, they were the foundation for this contemporary Sound of smooth jazz.
Dave Nourse
Kim as somebody who truly, I wouldn't, I don't want to say grew up with the radio station, but you certainly cut your teeth with the radio station. Held a variety of different roles. Hosted for many, many years. You know the format of straight ahead jazz very well. You know the format of contemporary jazz very well. I always loved hearing kind of you and how you felt about the types of music that we played. I'm curious, do you have a favorite artist, or do you have a favorite album? Do you have? Is there a particular and it could be from the straight ahead genre or the more contemporary genre? But is there? Is there an artist or an album which is just always spoken to you, and if so, how come
Kim Linzy
Great question, Dr Nourse, and I believe it's so much music in my head, but I will say for artists, definitely, I'm offer some that are not maybe the mainstream. They are mainstream now. But Paul Brown, for example, spectacular guitarist, but he's also a great composer and producer. He is the one who put my second one, not my first, bony James, on the map from his trust CD. So and you start to follow the artists over a period of time, because you're working, I'm working with the music. So I, like you said, a lot of music in my head. So for smooth ass, I would say Boney Paul Brown, more contemporary, and the next generation would be like a Lynn Rowntree, a trumpeter, Boney play sex. And, of course, Brian Simpson this keyboards, variations, various instruments for straight ahead again, not maybe known as much as I would like him to be, but he is in the format of straight ahead. Dave Holland, outstanding basses. He plays both acoustic and also electric bass. And everyone goes to the John Coltrane's in the miles Dave is, but I like a Roy Hargrove, I love, I love trumpet, though, for sex, I know you do. You know, yes, so. And piano, of course, someone like Herbie Hancock, because we're not only talking about, again, the music. We're talking about, the production, the compositions. And that's, I believe, what stands out a good song has a good composition. And I'm a fan of that you are.
Kevin Stoker
Well, that's really interesting. You almost studied music as well as played it, right?
Kim Linzy
I feel like a musician who programs the music. I don't play an instrument, but you, when you start working with the music, you get a sound. And for example, each label, back when we had jazz labels, Blue Note conquer it's a sound for that label, and that's how come the music stands the test of time. Now I say respectfully, a lot of independent artists are making their own music, which is fine, but you need a good producer to help you hear that. It's It's decent, and you, you know dr Nourse, because you've been, you were, you were with the station for a long time. And we know we have some good music that's just like, yeah, and then some it's not so good, and that's usually from independent artists that does not have someone to mentor them, to listen, be second ears. We always, we always need some kind of, I Yeah, some kind of support system to help make sure you know you're doing the best. You can do the best practices, right,
Dave Nourse
And you learn, especially if you're if you're a novice musician, and I send like novice professional musician, you may have been playing for years and years, but the more you collaborate with others, the more that you can learn from a producer who's been around for a long time. It does. It certainly impacts the quality of the recording and the quality of the final master. Once that's put out, Kim, you've in your role as music director, you spend a lot of time talking with the labels, talking with the promoters. You know, that's a part of the radio business that we don't often see, because all we hear is the final product. We hear what goes out over the air. But so much of your time, I mean, I remember Mondays were your days to talk to promoters, so you didn't have time really to do anything other than host your show and work the phones. Kind of, What is life like when you're not behind the microphone? I mean, what is it if somebody had no idea how the radio business worked and they just come to you with a record, what is it that they don't know what? What can you tell us about kind of your experience working behind the scenes at a radio station?
Kim Linzy
Great question. Dr Nourse, and the most important thing that we're going to do, and myself, we're going to help an artist get through the traffic jam, if you will, of all the music that is released in a year, and I'm giving the example, when covid hit, when the pandemic, everyone's home now, so everyone's writing and composing songs. A flood of singles came through for us, and there's only so much air time in the day for any station, but you try to help the best sounding quality music to get on the air. Now, with that said, I work with the radio promoters who are there working someone like our friend Jason gore. He may have 20 artists that he is promoting, so therefore he wants them all played, but they do understand and you need to get them on your team. I can, oh, I can do this for you. I can get this and there's a rotation, because we are, we're billboard reporters, and we're also media based reporters. Artists, our spins matter, and we help the artists. Again, everything has to line up. The music needs to be good. Sound good on the air, and then as the artist moves up the chart, you help with them with spins. We call them spins, so the artist might start out with a light spin, light spins at 710, and then it moves to the next category, the medium that's could be somewhere between under 20 spins and over over 10, and we're talking in a week per week, yes, sir, yes. And then your power spins are over 20 under 30. That moves the chart. We are chart movers at KU NV I say that respectfully, right other stations listen to us, other smooth jazz stations, because at this time, when we became billboard reporters, there were about 21 stations on the panel. Now it's about 14. What does that mean? Artists like to be on the chart. It doesn't matter the genre. Every artist wants to hear. Taylor Swift was number one right now with with her song. And it doesn't matter the genre, it just they want that recognition, because some artists use it as a calling card. And this is I was told by a musician, this is not my thought. Walter Beasley. He saxophonist in smooth jazz. I read a post on his Facebook page and he says, why do people invest in radio promotion, and he had a couple of different ideas of reasons why. One was a calling card to get business, to get gigs, and also maybe to get into teaching, maybe since for the ego, you know. So it's different phases that the artist goes through. But the most serious artists, they definitely want to be charted, either on Billboard or media base is very important to their career. And you can look any, any artist, you can look at Toto, I'm saying, and a group book, and even how many number ones they had, where they fell on the chart, the United States chart, as well as the UK chart, is important to their career. This is like getting a Grammy or Oscar. You know, these are important awards and recognition for the work, if that makes sense, absolutely. Hi.
Kevin Stoker
You know, as you we've evolved into a smooth jazz station. Yes, what you know kind of, what is your barometer of deciding what gets on and what doesn't? How do you balance that? Because you're constantly being probably, I guess, the word contacted by promoters constantly, everybody's trying to push for you to put it on and everything else at the same time, you have this obligation to your listeners, correct? And so how do you balance those two obligations?
Kim Linzy
Thank you. Dr Stoker, that's the most important thing our listenership, first and foremost. You know, it doesn't you get used to the it's not even pressure, but the asking for for new music to be played, but we need to identify sound for our station, which I think we have over time, and it suggests it some songs, you know, it's like, you play, you could hear it on air. It's like, oh, that doesn't sound good. You take it out feedback. But the most important thing in with when I schedule music is a quality sound and listener listeners, usually, we have been blessed to get nice listener feedback. They'll let you know if they don't like something though. Oh, really, yeah, oh yes, they'll call it's not often, but if every once in a while, yes, a listener will call us like, I don't like the song. Well, we're not gonna change a song for one listener. But there's a statistic that says, if one listener calls about six others, do you remember that? Dr Nourse, about six others are thinking the same thing, they will not maybe call they're just gonna turn it down, and that's how it goes. So Dr Stoker, to your question, it's most important that the station sounds balanced, not too aggressive, because we are smooth ass over here, and more, and it's a continuity in the music. So that's my first. First is the station listenership, and the second is the business. It has to be that way, or you wind wound up not knowing your identity for the station.
Dave Nourse
So Kim, you started as a volunteer in 1989 Yes, you quickly rose through the ranks from being. Being kind of a volunteer fill in host to becoming the music director, the assistant Operations Manager. You've been through several, I mean, shoot, not just general managers. Think about university presidents. You've been through it. You know, throughout that time, you've watched the business really change, I guess, as you think about radio and the industry, what's still the same from when you started? And what are some of the big things that okay, well, we've really moved. I mean, we're in a video podcast studio right now. This is obviously something new. But what's still the same as it was in 1989 and what's so completely different, you wouldn't you hardly can even believe it.
Kim Linzy
I Okay, the same. We still run our membership drives. That was, I was blessed to be here for the first one, so 94 so that's still the same. But overall, the landscape has changed, and it's not really that much the same anymore as it should not be, because it's evolution. You know, it's any business model, if you're going to be successful, you have to evolve, right? So there's, I'm trying to think, because even the equipment's changed. You know, everything has changed. So we went from when I started, it was vinyl, then we moved on Tropicana, Tamaris for about nine years, and we CD players. That's when we converted from vinyl to CD players. Three, three CD players. You might remember us talking about at least, and then we move into Greenspan, and we're digital, which that process took Frank Muller, a former General Manager, then ops manager. It took us two, two years to convert CDs to a digital file and then have them on a hard drive. So that's the evolution. So as far as I can't think of anything that's really the same, other than membership drives and even the way they're conducting now different better. You know, it's improved. It has improved.
Dave Nourse
That is so interesting.
Kevin Stoker
You know, you've been on the air so long, and although in the last few years you've you haven't been on the air so much, but you were on the air, and actually, your show was quite popular. Did your family ever listen to you and everything else.
Kim Linzy
In the very beginning. Well, my children were young, and we were when we were in the Student Union. That's where I started now, Student Union, but it was the more your Student Union, especially on my Saturday show, I bring the kids up with me. They sit in the hall. And I think this not just for me, but I think people, when you are in the industry, your children or and your family gets used to it. It's not a big thing anymore. You know, mommy's on the radio, no, yes and no. But my daughter used to use it in school a lot, on the school bus. You know, my mom, she was, I think, the proudest of me the most. Yeah, she would tell people my mom's on the radio,
Kevin Stoker
That's cool.
Dave Nourse
Kim, when you since we're talking about your kids, yes, maybe you can tell us a little bit about them and kind of where they are right now and then I want to talk a little bit just about about you when you're not at the radio station, but tell us a little bit about your family.
Thank you, Doc. I have a daughter. She is 46 and right now, as life changes, she's we're together right now, and I have grandchildren, my oldest is 29 and my youngest is 20. And then they're the ages in between. I have like, seven. I have like a bonus grandchild. Well, I'm trying to get the numbers. I'm not gonna do that. We're not gonna hold up the podcast. So there's this. There's a nice window of ages by love. They are all grown responsible. And my son, he is married, also he and his wife, and they run their their self important. So they've had everything from owning the small car lot to to e commerce right now, really good. Oh, and you might get a kick out of this. Prince is doing the storage thing, like he's buying storages. He just started it last week. This is why I'm sharing it now, because this is the hoot. In fact, he was, I was talking to before the show, and he was like, Mom, we just bought this. This. Us a unit, and it had coins in it, gold coins. Wow, yeah, yes. And then he found out the history. I'm not going to go down the rabbit hole, but apparently this gentleman had it for three years, and if he makes three payments, they, they, they take, you know, sell it well. So those, that's just a little bit about, about the kids and and the grandkids.
What I what I told Kim Linzy last week when we were talking before the podcast is her son really is an entrepreneur. Prince is an entrepreneur, and he actually inspires me by how well he takes care of you. I was like, I need to treat my mom as well as Prince treats Kim Lindsey. So Kim, what I think is also really interesting, and it's just it's so outside of kind of what one would expect if they just were to run into you at the radio station and know your music background. You used to work for the IRS, and so you do your own taxes by hand. Can you tell us how one goes from a career working for the federal government, the Internal Revenue Service to how did you make it to the radio? Maybe just tell us a little bit about the IRS, kind of some of the because you've had some really interesting jobs.
Kim Linzy
Thank you. Yes, Docs, so back to graduating from Columbia School of broadcasting. When you're halfway through this, this curriculum, and I'm gonna get that word, and then you find out I was in LA. Then you find out you have to go to a small city, small radio station. I had a family, and I was married time, three kids there was like, No way. I was like, oh my goodness, you know, I'm not gonna I don't know how this I'm able to pull this off, but because I had Reloaded, relocated here after separation from my ex husband, that's when the opportunity happened, where, again, the job referral to the university. So, but I worked for LAPD at one time. Yes, I was in the teletype department, then from city government. Once you get in a government situation, you kind of work your way around someone from the LAPD. I actually started with the public library for five years, then LAPD, then I got into the federal government, IRS, so I worked in criminal investigations and our my duty, part of my duty, was doing the deep dive on cases that agents Were working on. A few come one come to mind. Well, would like to share that jewelry stores are responsible to report certain things to the police department. So then they go in and everything has to match up in LA anyway. That's what I can share, because, you know, it's coming off anyway, but those kind of things, so we're, I'm doing the data, and some things go on to become cases. You know you're doing, you're in sensitive areas there. So that so, but what happened is, when I moved here, I had 18 months to get back into the IRS, and it was only the one on Las Vegas Boulevard, the small one. So 18 months, 18 months, 18 months passed, and I was not able to get back in it, and I didn't really try to get into another department. But by then, my mom had retired. She she taught Culinary Arts at the LA Trade Tech. So she retired, came out here with me and the kids. And then my father, years well, like five, six years later, came out with us. We have a small family, but so yeah, I got I accidentally. But everything happens for a reason, if that makes sense, because if I was still with IRS, I wouldn't be here.
Dave Nourse
Isn't that interesting.
Kevin Stoker
Kim, we often, at the end of these podcasts, ask the question, if there's something we should have asked you that we didn't ask you, what would it be?
Kim Linzy
Oh, wow, that is a great question, and I think for what we're sharing and discussing for your podcast, I can't think of anything. I think like you've given me an opportunity to share me with your viewership and listenership. Thank you. Thank you. This has been great. I can't think of anything. Dr Stoker, but that's okay, yeah, I really can't
Kevin Stoker
It seems like you've adapted over the years. You've had different leadership at the radio station and everything else through all those years. What if you were going to pass on your wisdom to somebody else coming along? What would you tell them?0
Kim Linzy
Keep your head down and work and just like, adjust to your surroundings, because, again, things change. You know, things stays the same, so and ask for help. Ask for support. Definitely when you need to understand what your mission is, what your tasks are, you know it's like you may or may not agree, but always seek leadership. Hopefully you could have a dialog about where the station's moving, where the business end is moving, and be supportive. That's, I think, the best thing you can always do, no matter this here, anywhere.
Kevin Stoker
Yeah, great. Well, thank you for your time. Kim.
Dave Nourse
Kim Linzy, thank you so much.
Kim Linzy
Thank you. Thank you both very much. Dr Stoker, Dr Nourse, for having me. This is a treat. Thank you.
Transcribed by https://otter.ai